Travel Dreaming Boomer Style

Don’t you just hate temptation? Here I am, barely recovered from my trip to Cairo, and I’m dreaming about boomer travel again. It’s all the fault of National Geographic Adventures. When I checked the pile of mail that had stacked up during my travel to Egypt, there it was — another travel brochure.

Now, I’m no stranger to glossy brochures that tempt boomer travelers. Photogenic pamphlets from Tauck, SilverSea, Seabourn, Regent, Viking Cruises and more pile up on the corner of my desk every month. I usually give them a quick thumb through and move on to the rest of the mail.

But the National Geographic Adventures 2012 catalog is different — it has two of my three favorite words underneath the title — active traveler. Boomer is the only word missing. And then there are two more words that ignite my travel dreams — unique trips. So you put it all together and how could I resist looking at a brochure that advertises “unique trips for the active traveler”?

Now, before you read one more word, let’s get something straight. National Geographic Adventures is not paying me to write about their upcoming trips. And, I don’t have any plans to hit them up for a discount because I’m writing about their trips. The company doesn’t even know that I’m sharing this with you. But after looking at National Geographic Adventures 2012 offerings, I just had to write about them.

Activity levels for the trips are divided into easy, moderate, strenuous and the ultimate challenge. A chart inside the front cover explains the amount of activity that boomer travelers can expect for each level. Some trips are a combination of easy/moderate or moderate/strenuous. And in almost all cases, participants can opt out of an activity if they need to rest from overdoing it.

So which trip caught my boomer eye? England Coast to Coast — one of the moderate itineraries. I could start out the journey dipping my toe in the Irish Sea and end the trip testing out the cold waters of the North Sea. The longest walking day is 14 miles but most of the other days average around 9 miles of hiking. One thing is for sure, I’d be using all of the boomer travel fitness tips that Nora Lynch has taught us.

Strenuous itineraries include The Sacred Valley Trek in Bhutan or hiking in Patagonia. Those seeking the ultimate travel challenge can book the Kilimanjaro Climb and Safari.

Partnering with Mountain Travel Sobek, National Geographic Adventures has crafted trips as short as 8 days, although most seem to be about two weeks.The small trip journeys — think approximate 8 to 15 travelers — include expert guides and unique accommodations. Have you ever slept in a traditional ger camp? You’ll do so on the Mongolia itinerary.